Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

According to the UN, in 2020 alone 689 buildings were demolished, most of them homes. In 2021, it was reported that Irish aid to Palestine had been destroyed, including solar panels and tents. It is appalling that this would happen to people who are suffering already. That is the human aspect of it. The aspect we are discussing at this meeting is the Irish money and other EU funds that are going in there but the human aspect is the most important part of it. It is appalling that Israel feels it can just drive a bulldozer through this. I would ask the Department to take a strong line with the Israeli authorities and with the embassy here. We are taking a strong line on Russia, and rightly so. This might be overshadowed by the war in Ukraine but the suffering in Palestine since 1947 is outrageous. This State, the Irish people and Palestinian support groups have played a positive role in trying to highlight that suffering and it is important that we do that. We may be falsely accused of being other things because we raise it. People should not be labelled wrongly because they raise legitimate questions about how oppressed people are tormented, harassed and driven to despair. I urge the Department to continue working on that. I thank Mr. de Búrca for that information.